Hearts Push 8 Points Clear in Front at Top After Lawrence Shankland's Penalty Kick Overcomes Celtic
We did not witness at their home ground, since it's far too early for such milestones. This game highlighted is that Heart of Midlothian are at least in with strong chance of breaking Scottish football's four decade-long title duopoly. Make that an eight-point lead for the maroon side over Celtic, whom they comfortably swatted aside. The challenge is now for others.
Decisive Period in the Second Half
A brief but pivotal phase made the difference, once the initial exchanges that was contested closely. What was so notable after they extended their advantage was how stress-free the rest of the game was for the home side. Alexandros Kyziridis scored Hearts’ second, drifting inside before blasting a strike past the stationary the Celtic keeper. Soon there was further euphoria in the stands, the Celtic defender fouling the Hearts player for a foul that Shankland converted. Brendan Rodgers cut such a disconsolate figure; his problems are mounting.
Fans start to rejoice after Kyziridis (second right) puts Hearts 2-1 up against Celtic.
Hoops' Reaction
Celtic bounced back from an early setback. The defender, who endured a torrid afternoon, scored an own goal due to haste when trying to remove a ball into the box. Celtic edged their way back into the game, skipper McGregor, scoring a Tierney cutback for 1-1.
Stubborn Defence
The keeper Schwolow, who had made a brilliant stop from Benjamin Nygren in the first half, blocked an Engels shot which flicked off Magnússon. Halkett blocked a Yamada attempt in the dying moments. They comfortably saw out the game as the minutes passed. “We stand firm” has become the popular anthem at the ground. It's hard to ignore the excitement.
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